The way the media has reported it, outsiders are likely to see Hamtramck, Michigan as the epitome of racial and religious strife in the United States. In November, it became the first city in the country to elect a Muslim-majority city council.

Palestinian-American community leader Rasmea Odeh on Thursday was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison over immigration fraud, a lenient jail term considering the prosecution’s call for her to serve five to seven years.